Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Toni Witt. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Alright, Toni thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Risk taking is something we’re really interested in and we’d love to hear the story of a risk you’ve taken.

Starting a business is all about risk. First there’s a level of personal risk you take, I did this when I decided to drop out of university and move to another continent. Then there’s the business risk itself – starting a business, especially if it’s building a novel product or exploring a new market, is all about making hypotheses and visions about the world. But most of the idea you have when you start is just a list of assumptions. You have no idea if things will turn out the way you imagine them. Plus there are a million unforeseeable things that will get in your way.

Most people are deterred by this, but I try to flip the logic around in my head. When I chose to drop out, to make a big move, and to start a business, I didn’t ask what’s the risk of this not working out, I asked what’s the risk of not trying it in the first place? Things stay where they are. Your life becomes linear. You spend your limited time on this earth doing things that don’t truly excite you. I make every decision around trying to avoid that outcome: because it’s the riskiest of all. And it’s soo easy to slip into a mindset of mediocrity. That’s the risk. With that frame of mind, even the so-called riskiest decisions actually become the most sensible.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

The problem my company is tackling is one that I’m sure almost everybody has experienced since the pandemic: QR code menus at restaurants suck.

First, they suck for the diner. Half of them are PDFs that you have to painstakingly search through and the other half are non-responsive websites.

They also suck for the restaurant. Turns out most restaurants offering QR menus had them custom-made from a dev shop or a marketing agency. This is expensive and means the manager busy on the floor can’t update the menu themself. As a result most restaurants only review their menu once a year, if at all, despite the fact that consumer preferences, ingredient prices, and market conditions are changing all the time. This puts the restaurant at a serious disadvantage. Our company tries to help, though we haven’t figured out exactly how yet. We’re still knee-deep in iteration.

On a personal level, I like working with hospitality businesses. Local restaurants and bars are undeniably cornerstones of any community, and supporting the hardworking people who make it happen day-in day-out is immensely fulfilling. It’s also a great way to be part of the city in a unique way, which is a goal I’ve set since moving here about 6 months ago without knowing anyone.

Are there any books, videos, essays or other resources that have significantly impacted your management and entrepreneurial thinking and philosophy?

I believe at least 50% of your time as an entrepreneur should be spent learning new things. In fact, the intense need for constant self-improvement and self-reinvention is one of the reasons I love being an entrepreneur.

The problem is that most books, podcasts, articles, and mentorship meetings are only valuable if you can apply their lessons immediately to problems you’re facing. I remember reading the Lean Startup before starting a company, and it was so boring I couldn’t understand why everyone loved it. That’s why not all materials in the following list will be helpful to you, even though I’ll try to give an indication of the order in which things should be consumed. Of course, it’s an incomplete list because I can’t see further than my current vantage point.

If you’re just starting out: YC Startup School video library, The 4-Hour Work Week, The Bezos Letters by Anderson, go to local startup and tech events.

Next up: Lean Startup, Zero to One, Predictable Revenue by Ross and Tyler, Venture Deals by Brad Feld (if you’re pursuing VC funding), watch through some long-form content from Alex Hormozi, paulgraham.com

Once you have a product or service offering: $100M Offers by Hormozi

As you scale: Creativity Inc by Catmull, The Hard Thing About Hard Things, The Innovator’s Dilemma by Christensen

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @toni.witt1
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/toni-witt
• Other: https://toniwitt.substack.com/